Boy Cast

Nicolas Wilder (left) and Nick Baldock (right) play Peter and Daryl in 2 Boys In A Bed On A Cold Winter’s Night. Photo by John MacLellan.

With the need for two actors for a show set in New York City, why not go straight to the source?

In casting Richmond Triangle Players new show 2 Boys In A Bed On A Cold Winter’s Night, artistic director John Knapp and show director Justin Amellio took a Friday overnight bus to NYC and returned the next day at 5 p.m.

“We knew this show would potentially be difficult to cast – full nudity for one reason – but more importantly, finding the right mix of the two boys,” director Justin Amellio said. “They’re interactions are much more than what they seem on the page.”

After hosting auditions in Richmond with a pleasing turnout, Knapp and Amellio explored the option of a New York casting by posting an ad on Playbill.com. After their whirlwind 24-hour trip, they came back to Richmond with their guys.

“It was never about [casting] Richmond or no Richmond – it was just about the right two boys,” Amellio said.

And those two boys? Both New York-based actors - Nick Baldock and Nicholas Wilder – came to Richmond, rehearsed the show, and open Thursday night in just a span of a week and a half.

The story takes place in realtime over the course of an aftermath of a one night stand in 1987 at the height of the AIDS crisis. It’s a voyeuristic look under the sheets of Daryl & Peter’s hanky panky – told through Daryl’s memory set to the scene of a disembodied loft designed to float the stage.

“It’s that moment when you’re on the edge of something that happened that’s more than just the previous 45-minutes,” Amellio says.

Baldock who plays Daryl said although the play is a period piece – the characters transcend era. Wilder, who plays Peter, agrees.

“It transcends the time – it’s set in 1987, but it could be in 2011 very easily. This is about two people trying to connect – succeeding and failing throughout the night,” Wilder says.

As for exploring Richmond – both guys have been transplanted for the run of the show and will get to hit the town more after opening night.

2 Boys In A Bed On A Cold Winter’s Night runs through Saturday, February 4. For tickets and showtimes, visit http://rtriangle.org or call 804-346-8113. Richmond Triangle Players is at 1300 Altamont Avenue, Richmond, VA.

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